1. Field of Invention
This invention relates generally to a tire having a tread designed for high performance.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In automotive vehicles, proper traction between the tire and the road surface is necessary for effective operation of the vehicle. Under certain weather conditions, such as rain, the traction of the tire on the road surface can be impaired. For example, a vehicle traveling on a rain-soaked road surface at high speed can "hydroplane" and lose contact with the road surface altogether. For this reason, it is desirable that tires be able to channel water away from the footprint of the tire to ensure good traction between the tire and road surface. U.S. Pat. No. 5,176,766 discloses a tire tread designed to provide good traction on slippery road surfaces.
A second problem is that four-wheeled vehicles are usually fitted with identical tires at all four wheel positions even though the operating conditions and performance requirements at each wheel may be different. For example, the functions necessarily performed by each tire, such as steering, load bearing, and transmitting driving torque from the engine to the road surface are usually different at each wheel position.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,984,616 discloses tire/vehicle system for an automotive vehicle. Whereas the use of such tires on dry pavement has met with immense success, there is still unacceptable traction on wet surfaces.